CFD-Based Analysis of Installed Fuel Consumption and Aerodynamics of Transonic Transport Aircraft during Cruise Flight

Abstract

Gas turbine fuel burn for an aircraft engine can be obtained analytically using thermodynamic cycle analysis. For large-diameter ultra-high bypass ratio turbofans, the impact of nacelle drag and propulsion system integration must be accounted for in order to obtain realistic estimates of the installed specific fuel consumption. However, simplified models cannot fully represent the complexity of installation effects. In this paper, we present a method that combines thermodynamic cycle analysis with detailed Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modelling of the installation aerodynamics to obtain the fuel consumption at a given mission point. The flow field and propulsive forces arising in a transport aircraft powered by an ultra-high bypass ratio turbofan at cruise are first examined to characterise the operating conditions and measure the sensitivity to variations of the incidence at transonic flight. The proposed methodology, in which dynamic balance of the vehicle is achieved at each integration point, is then applied along a cruise segment to calculate the cumulative fuel burn and the change in the specific fuel consumption.

A Review of Novel and Non-Conventional Propulsion Integrations for Next-Generation Aircraft

“…The values of percentage drag variations for nacelle, wing and their integration with respect to engine positioning, assessed in [73], is reported in Figure 6, showing the contrasting trends between wing and nacelle and the need to find trade-off solutions. An applied extension of this study, and of its related computational framework, is described in [76], where detailed aerodynamic simulation of the combined UHBR turbofan and airframe is used to provide information to accurately calculate aircraft mission fuel consumption. Specifically, both the thermodynamic analysis of the turbofan and the advanced simulation of the aircraft's transonic aerodynamics by means of CFD, including the modelling of installation effects, are used to obtain information on the state An applied extension of this study, and of its related computational framework, is described in [76], where detailed aerodynamic simulation of the combined UHBR turbofan and airframe is used to provide information to accurately calculate aircraft mission fuel consumption.…”

“…An applied extension of this study, and of its related computational framework, is described in [76], where detailed aerodynamic simulation of the combined UHBR turbofan and airframe is used to provide information to accurately calculate aircraft mission fuel consumption. Specifically, both the thermodynamic analysis of the turbofan and the advanced simulation of the aircraft's transonic aerodynamics by means of CFD, including the modelling of installation effects, are used to obtain information on the state An applied extension of this study, and of its related computational framework, is described in [76], where detailed aerodynamic simulation of the combined UHBR turbofan and airframe is used to provide information to accurately calculate aircraft mission fuel consumption. Specifically, both the thermodynamic analysis of the turbofan and the advanced simulation of the aircraft's transonic aerodynamics by means of CFD, including the modelling of installation effects, are used to obtain information on the state of the aircraft at different points of the cruise and thus estimate fuel consumption in a significantly more realistic way than the use of semi-empirical models.…”